Which to use
“weigern” and “weigerten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,760
- “weigern” frequency rank
- #37,887
- “weigerten” frequency rank
- 56647
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | weigern | weigerten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ablehnen, etwas zu tun | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs weigern |
Where the eye mixes weigern and weigerten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. weigern runs 7 letters (CVVCVCC) against weigerten's 9 (CVVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between weigern and weigerten
A purely visual mix-up. weigern ([ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐn]) and weigerten ([ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56647, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
weigern is recorded at frequency rank #18,760, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐn]. weigerten is at rank #37,887, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯ɡɐtn̩].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 56647, this pair ranks #932,179 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of weigern vs weigerten
Shared letters: eginrw. Private to "weigern": -. Private to "weigerten": t.
"weigern" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC · "weigerten" · 9 letters · shape CVVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "weigern" and "weigerten" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "weigern" or "weigerten"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "weigern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "weigerten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #932,179 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "weigern" and "weigerten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "weigere vs weigerten". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #932,179 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.